A Small Thing

[matril]

Padmé was frankly relieved to remain in her handmaiden guise as they exited the ship and were greeted by the Supreme Chancellor himself on the landing platform. She was still greatly shaken by the brutal attack that had greeted them upon their coming out of hyperspace, too much to scrounge up any response to Valorum's words. Sabé performed admirably, her voice steady but serious as she thanked him for his attention and explained what had just occurred.

Valorum's face was grave as he took in this new state of affairs. “This is unthinkable. And so close to the capital! This will all be addressed by the Senate, I promise you.”

Sabé merely nodded and followed Senator Palpatine, along with the rest of the entourage, to a transport.

The exchange had hardly been comforting. Valorum was shocked, aggrieved...but if such an attack could take place so close to Coruscant, how much was the Senate's authority worth? Did Valorum's promise hold any true power? Palpatine's frown seemed to indicate otherwise.

In the privacy of his own chambers, once Padmé had again donned the robes of Amidala, the Senator was more forthright. “I must be frank, Your Highness. The Chancellor has little real power.” There was disillusionment in his tone, a loss of the idealism that Padmé still clung to. “He is mired by...baseless...accusations of corruption.”

Corruption? Padmé wondered at Palpatine's hesitation; did he fear the accusations were not quite baseless?

But Valorum's true character was, in fact, irrelevant. What mattered was his ability to be an advocate for Naboo, and if he could not, there was little hope of succeeding. Padmé's heart sank. All this way to come to Coruscant, all the danger and trouble, and it may be entirely fruitless.

Senator Palpatine sighed. “I think we're going to have to accept Federation control for the time being.”

His resignation had the opposite effect of what he had probably intended. Queen Amidala's eyes flashed with royal indignation. “That is something I cannot do.”

What could she do? If only she had more of her advisors with her, people to listen as she spoke her thoughts aloud and tried to make sense of things, to make suggestions or offer their opinions about her limited options. But there was only her captain, and his primary motivation was her safety. Her handmaidens were intelligent and insightful, but they had no more experience than she did.

Absurdly, she found herself wanting the company of someone who couldn't possibly offer any practical help – little Ani Skywalker. He didn't know a single thing about politics, and would probably want to talk about piloting speeders and building droids. Somehow she felt that such a conversation would be vastly comforting, and better than a dozen advisors.

But she had neither, so she would prepare for the Senate session and keep her thoughts rolling uselessly around in her head.
--
Obi-Wan had little to contribute to his Master's report to the Council. Mostly, he stood in silence while Qui-Gon enumerated the treacheries of the Trade Federation and the requisite alterations in their mission. Even if Obi-Wan had had anything particular to contribute, he wouldn't have been able to. His Master hurried through the report as if anxious to get to something else.

The attack from the enemy ship. That was his true interest. Qui-Gon's concern was deeper than he had revealed. He spoke at great length about the sudden appearance of the starship, the skillful maneuverings of its unseen pilot. And he finished with the startling pronouncement that he sensed the Dark Side in the pilot's actions.

“I have seen few pilots perform so deftly without Jedi training,” he said, folding his arms in somber finality. “My only conclusion is that it was a Sith Lord.”

Obi-Wan started, as did most of the Council members. He had felt some trace of the Dark Side as well, and the mysterious attacker's skill had been uncanny, certainly, but a Sith? That seemed quite a conclusion to leap to.

Several leading members of the Council offered reasonable arguments. The Sith had been extinct for over a thousand years; they would not have reemerged without attracting the attention of the Jedi...but against all these Qui-Gon remained unmoved, unshaken in his belief. Qui-Gon's insights had been too useful in the past to be discounted immediately; even the greatest skeptic on the Council had to admit that. They would give the matter consideration.

Obi-Wan hadn't realized how tense he was, standing beside the focal point of the Council's scrutiny, until they were dismissed. He turned to go in open relief, but his Master wasn't following. What now?

“More to say, have you?” Master Yoda said, as if drawing upon his stores of patience for the dozenth time.

“Yes.” In maddening serenity Qui-Gon said, “I have sensed a vergence in the Force.”

Master Windu leaned forward. “Located around a person?”

“I was not able to determine that,” Qui-Gon explained. “I sensed it briefly on Naboo, just before our departure."

So he still had that on his mind. Obi-Wan had nearly forgotten about whatever-it-was in the hanger in Theed, after dodging blockades and enduring a chase with a ship guided by the Dark Side....but his master wouldn't be distracted by anything.

Qui-Gon paused, gazed around the Council chamber. “I would like to return to the planet and investigate more closely, to discover its source.”

A few Council members shifted position uncomfortably. He was bold, that was certain. Obi-Wan hovered at the doorway, half-proud of his master, half-wanting to leave.

Dryly Master Yoda reminded Qui-Gon, “Under siege by the Federation, Naboo is. A difficult thing, you are asking.”

“I am aware of that. I feel it is worth the risk.”

“Merely to investigate a vergence?” Master Mundi shook his head doubtfully. “It would be foolhardy, and without great benefit. Vergences occur every day, and are seldom of great import.”

“This one was of greater import than any I have sensed before,” Qui-Gon said. “If it is in fact centered around a person, it is a person of particular power and influence, possessing a connection to the Force that is unprecedented.”

There was a silence. At last, in disbelief, Master Windu said, “You refer to the prophecy of the one who will bring balance to the Force.”

Qui-Gon simply nodded.

“Any other proof of this claim, have you?” Yoda looked at him shrewdly.

“None at present. That is why I wish to return to Naboo.”

Another silence. If it were any other Jedi requesting such a thing, the Council would likely give little or no consideration to such astounding claims. For Qui-Gon...

“We will discuss it,” Master Windu said curtly. “When we have reached a decision, you will be summoned again.”

Qui-Gon bowed, apparently satisfied for the present, and came to Obi-Wan at last. As usual there was no apology for the consternation he had caused; he just gave a mild smile, then beckoned him out of the Council chamber.

And then they waited for the Council's decision.

Comments

[lazypadawan.livejournal.com]

They're still not going to train him I bet ;).

[krpalmer.livejournal.com]

Padme thinking of Anakin as someone who could help her was an interesting idea, and made me wonder a bit about whether I could possibly reinterpret "the original"... I suppose that for me the meeting with the Jedi Council seemed a bit like "covering for the things that didn't happen in this alternative reality," though.